Ischaemic heart disease

Ischaemic heart disease is the lesser-known name of the condition that is the biggest killer out of all heart diseases across Europe and America.

What is Ischaemic heart disease?

Ischaemia means reduced blood supply, so Ischaemic heart disease is the reduction in the blood supply to the heart.

The blood supply is affected by the narrowing of the coronary arteries; the danger of this is that the coronary arteries are the only arteries that carry blood to the heart.

How will I know if I have Ischaemic heart disease?

People suffering with this heart disease feel it as angina. This does not necessarily mean they feel awful chest pain, in most circumstances they will feel pressure or heaviness on the chest, this may be thought of initially as heartburn (for the record heartburn has nothing to do with the heart and is a digestive problem), also a feeling of choking is not uncommon.

What are the affects of Ischaemic heart disease?

The affects of this heart disease can be life changing and in some cases, life ending.

All those who are unfortunate to feel the affects of this condition will have temporary damage and pain to the arteries.

Some people may also suffer the ability to use muscles as effectively, permanent damage to the heart muscle and problems with the heart muscles activity in the long term, an irregular heartbeat and damage to vital parts of the hearts function like the valves may also occur.

Can I prevent Ischaemic heart disease?

You cannot prevent this condition per se but you can reduce the risks of it occurring by following a few simple lifestyle changes. A few of the most obvious and easy to follow lifestyle changes are below.

Exercise

A lot can be said for regular exercise. If you exercise for thirty minutes about 4 or 5 times a week you can vastly improve your cardiovascular fitness, this strengthens your heart and reduces the risks of heart disease.

Lose weight

Its a sad thing to say, but if you enjoy your food and have a few extra pounds of body weight you can be putting excessive strain on your heart, especially if you are more senior in your years. This added pressure could build up over time causing too much pressure and giving you heart disease.

Shift Work

It has been reported that people who work shifts (varying hours of work) are 3 times more likely to fall fowl to heart disease than anyone else, this is due to a higher number of shift workers being heavy smokers, but also because of the stress these hours put on the body due to lack of sleep and irregular sleeping patterns.

Diet

Your diet can help regulate your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, which can both be a big contributing factor to heart disease. To keep your blood pressure and cholesterol to an acceptable level it is important to eat healthily and reduce the amount of fat you take in through your diet on a daily basis.